there were heads of state from a number of countries, all 91 foreign delegations were here. it made for some rather interesting scenes. in fact, we saw one point president barack obama shake hands with cuba's raoul castro, something no one would expect to see. for years, south africans have shared nelson mandela with the world. today the world came here to say goodbye. strains of south africa's national anthem, a song in five languages, diverse and beautiful, like the country itself. a fitting beginning to it a service honoring south africa's greatest son. >> to celebrate the life of a hero. . >> reporter: the memorial held as rain fell in the continent of africa. leaders the world over converged here, more than 70 in all. the delegation from the united states led by president obama, included former presidents george w. bush, bill clinton and jimmy carter. the measure of mandela so great, america's presidents shared a stage with cuban leader, castro. >> for peace without, for peace within. >> reporter: after interfaith prayers, the tributes began. first, andrew melangani, wh